The Fellowship Inside the Fellowship
by Rachel Lyn Cullen
Summary: Merry/Pippin slash that follows them and their relationship through the three LotR books and beyond. How do they truly feel about each other and will those feelings live through the horror of the War of the Ring? Read to find out.
1. Chapter 1

**The Fellowship Inside the Fellowship**

**Author's Note: **This is my first delve into the world of slash fiction. If your looking for a hot, fast paced M/P slash then don't look here for it cause you won't find it, but if you like romanticism mixed with some witticisms then read on.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Tolkien's work, though I think I own the right to shack them up with whomever I want in this fanfiction.

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><p><strong>The Fellowship Inside the Fellowship<strong>

Chapter 1

"Oh where is Gandalf?" Frodo sighed, looking down into his hands. He had been repeating the phrase constantly over the last few hours and it was sort of becoming a mantra to him. "He should be here by now."

Pippin, on Frodo's right, took a long sip of wine. "I'm sure he will turn up Frodo. In the mean while please stop your moping and enjoy your last birthday in Bag End."

Hearing this, Merry, to Frodo's left, added, "And if you don't stop worrying and start drinking instead you will find that the last of the Old Winyards will be gone before you've even had a sniff of it."

At this Frodo looked up at the table, his eyes anxiously scanning the open bottles of alcohol. Noticing that there was still ample supply left, he relaxed slightly and allowed himself a swig from his previously untouched glass before turning to Merry.

"Cousin Meriadoc don't tease me like that, though I do deserve it for how glum I've been acting all day." He raised his glass and took another swallow from it. " Pippin is of course right that I should enjoy my birthday here at Bag End before I leave to move to Crickhollow. So I'm going to make it my duty to finish this marvelous brew, with the help of my friends of course." Frodo once more raised his glass, this time in the manner of a toast. "I would of course like to remark that today is Bilbo's 128th birthday this year. The only other thing I would like to drink to is the end of the Baggins legacy. It lasted long and may we hope that it is just as long if not longer before it is forgotten."

"To Bilbo, to Frodo and to the Baggins' of Bag End," Merry, Pippin, Folco and Fredegar chanted in response and all five of them drained their glasses, immediately refilling them.

Slowly the evening grew later and they sang many songs and talked of many things they had done together in the Shire. All the while, the drink continued to fill the cups in front of their occupants, as all were constantly serving one another more of the intoxicating beverage. Pippin appeared to have consumed more wine than any of the others, for he was slightly slurred in his manner of speech. When Frodo suggested he leave the rest of his wine, Pippin agreed that this was a good idea, adding that he was going to step out for a breath of air.

Frodo smiled and told Pippin that he would be out in a bit to join him, that he just wanted to finish the wine, have a smoke, then stretch out his legs in the garden before retiring. Nodding, Pippin said he would see Frodo and the others in a bit, implying subtly that he needed a moment of peace to himself and that he was grateful nobody was getting up to follow him.

Indeed Pippin had realized something that he wanted to mull over, something that he had realized when they were discussing all the mischief they had done around Hobbiton and Tuckborough and Buckland. Actually he really had more than one conclusion that he came to as he paced back and forth in the back garden of Bag End in a slightly inebriated state, puffing at his pipe, blowing his smoke in curly wisps up to the stars and moon in the sky above; a sky that under normal circumstances made him feel tiny, tonight gave him the sense that he was beyond miniscule in comparison to the world around him. For it was that night that Peregrin Took truly fell in love with Merry.

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><p><strong>R&amp;R<strong>


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Thank you to my beta-reader Orange Roxas and for her input on my fanfiction.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the character's or locations mentioned in this fanfiction. They all belong to Mr. Tolkien, though I will use them to my advantage.

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><p><strong><span>Chapter 2<span>**

Pippin slowly came to a halt, then plopped himself into the grass amidst a smattering of flowers. Looking up at the enormous canvas of lights above, shining down on him, he lay back and closed his eyes, extinguishing his pipe and letting the memories that engulfed him smoulder instead.

It was at Merry's last birthday party that Pippin had started to notice their relationship was changing. Pippin had felt a spark of jealousy deep in his gut, as Merry had conversed with Estella Bolger, but he shoved it aside, saying to himself, 'You spend all your time with him, so it's only right that you let him think about himself and his own needs.'

However as Merry began to call on Estella more frequently, Pippin started to notice this sensation more often and found it harder to avoid. To try and compensate for this confusing and overwhelming mix of feelings, Pippin began to shy away whenever his cousin drew near, instead spending most of his time alone or with Frodo.

It was not until he noticed that Frodo was acting strangely, that Pippin decided it was time to seek Merry's advice. Entering Brandy Hall, he went down the familiar stream of corridors until he faced the door of Merry's room. Silently, he drew a breath, braced himself, and knocked on the door.

Shortly, the door opened a crack and Merry poked his head out. Upon seeing Pippin's face, he threw the door opened and gestured him inside. Hesitating briefly, Pippin walked across the threshold, where he was surprised to find that there was other's in the room. Gathered in a cluster of chairs around the bed were Sam and Fredegar, both of whom by their poses suggested that they had just stopped in the middle of deep discussion.

"What's this all about?" Pippin asked, a bemused expression on his face.

"We were discussing Mr. Frodo," Sam piped up. "You see, as I have already gone over with the others here, he intends on leaving the Shire to go on a dangerous task."

As the others went over all the details again, Pippin sat on the bed beside Merry, only half listening. From what he could gather, Frodo was going no matter what, and that Sam and Merry had taken it upon themselves to accompany him, whether he protested to it or not.

'Merry is leaving on a quest from which he might not come back to me,' Pippin thought, a sinking feeling expanding from his stomach to include his whole being. Then, out loud he said, "I will go to! Frodo will need all the help he can get, and I don't intend on staying behind when everyone else is playing a part." That is what his head was telling him, although his heart spoke otherwise, telling him that the reasoning behind his decision was to help Merry.

However, because of how busy Pippin was kept in his preparations, he had little time to dwell on this decision (for whatever reason he may have chosen to make it.)

Finally though, Pippin had confronted his feelings, after a Frodo had finished telling one of his stories of a raid he had made on Farmer Maggot's mushroom patch.

Fatty (Fredegar) Bolger had sat up straight and cleared his throat, looking at Merry. His face going slightly pinker, already flushed from the wine, he asked, "So what was it that was so important, that you barged into my sister's room without knocking, yesterday?"

Merry turned a firey crimson, his face proverbially slapped and words spluttering from his lips, "H-h-how did you know about that?" His eyes darted around the room desperately, as though searching for a way of escape.

"Because my room is across the hall and I witnessed it meself," Fatty replied. "But that is not the point. The point is you entered into my sister's room without announcing your presence. Why?"

Pippin stared intently at Merry his heart pounding, waiting for him to reply. Merry caught Pippin's eye, then heaved a sigh and responded.

"The reason for my intrusion into Estella's room without an announcement, is that I had something I needed to get off my chest and at the time the simple act of knocking didn't cross my mind."

Brain whirring, Pippin thought through all the things Merry may have had to tell Estella, but one stuck out in his mind; Merry had proposed to her.

"What did you tell my sister?" Fatty pressed, though the others made no attempt to continue the topic.

This time his face turning bright purple, Merry mumbled, "I had a profession of love to make."

Pippin clasped onto his wine glass and drained it, attempting to drown out the pain that enveloped him and stem the ringing that emanated in his ears. Grabbing at the nearest bottle of Old Winyards, he refilled his cup and then drank that too, hoping that with each swig he would forget everything about this night.

Pippin had had a couple of more glasses before Frodo had recommended he stop. Using that moment to his advantage, he went into the garden, where he had lit his pipe and paced, thinking of his cousin and the way his curls had hung from his forehead, his eyes dancing in the light of the fire.

'He really is handsome,' Pippin finally concluded. 'And I don't care if he doesn't love me because I love him.'

With that Pippin had grinned, deciding that he would do everything that it took to show his love for Merry.

Now, as he lay on his back in the grass, his eyes still shut, he sighed, knowing that the task before him may prove impossible, but that it was worth it if he could be with Merry always.

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><p><strong>AN:** I poured this chapter out in a manner of hours, after which I went straight into the next one. If you want to hear what happens next, review.


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